No golf tournament has more magic attached to it than the Masters - and now five more Europeans are about to experience it for the first time.

Luke Donald, Graeme McDowell, David Howell, Joakim Haeggman and British amateur champion Stuart Wilson, who was briefly part of the County Durham set-up last year, are part of a record 21-strong contingent who qualified for the tournament this year.

How things have changed. It is only 21 years since Europe had a mere five players in the field - defending champion Seve Ballesteros, Nick Faldo, Bernhard Langer, Peter Oosterhuis and amateur Philip Parkin.

And in 1976 it was just two - Oosterhuis and Maurice Bembridge.

Donald is already in the world's top 20 and the High Wycombe golfer has started believing he can win any event he plays. And many people are starting to believe it too, despite a record in the Open championship which so far shows five appearances and five missed cuts.

Following a blistering US college record, Donald has already earned more than £3m in a four-year professional career and, after Bernhard Langer decided to give him a Ryder Cup wild card last September he responded with a polished display.

Donald has a cool head to go with a solid golf game and, even if Augusta is made more for the spectacular than the solid, he liked what he saw when he paid an advance trip recently.

Normally first-timers are struck by how hilly the Georgia course is, something which television does not convey at all.

But Donald said: "It's tighter than I thought it would be and that's good for my game. You have to position your iron shots into the green in specific places.

"You have to control the distance and where you hit it. That's what I'm pretty good at. It suits my game fine, I think."